Black communities are more likely to inhale toxic air than any other population according to a study released by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), reports Colorlines.

"Disparities in Distribution of Particulate Matter Emission Sources by Race and Poverty Status" was published by the American Journal of Public Health and released on February 22.

Scientists examined plants that emitted pollution across the United States and measured the effects throughout different communities as categorized by the race and socioeconomic level of residents.

People living in poverty had 1.35 times more exposure than the rest of the country. Exposure among people of color was 1.28 times higher than that of white people. Black communities had an exposure rate of 1.54, meaning they were 54 percent more likely to be exposed to unclean air than the rest of the population.

The only states which did not show any air quality disparities among race and class were Virginia, North Dakota, New Mexico, Maryland and Washington, D.C.

“Our study contributes to the narrative by providing a systematic study of burden by race, ethnicity, and poverty status across the entire US,” Ihab Mikati, one of the study’s authors, told Buzzfeed.